By Jupiter Tide Staff
JUPITER — A small wood-frame house on the corner of Center Street and Loxahatchee Drive could become Jupiter's next locally designated historic home.
The Town Council has scheduled a public hearing for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17, on a local historic designation for 358 Center Street, a circa 1931 single-family house that its owners, Bethany and David Olin, have asked to have named "The Corner House." The hearing is in the Council Chambers at Town Hall, 210 Military Trail, according to a Town public notice posted Nov. 2 (PZ 26-6912).
Why the house matters, according to the Town
Town staff and the Town's historic and archaeological consultant found that the house meets five of the nine criteria in the Town Code for a local historic designation, according to the staff report prepared for the Historic Resources Board. Only one is required.
The report points to:
Its owners. Rex Albertson and his wife, Susan Carlin-Albertson, bought the lot in 1925. Albertson served on the Town Council from 1925 to 1930 and, before that, as a Palm Beach County commissioner. Susan was the daughter of Capt. Charles Carlin, who commanded the Jupiter Life Saving Station in 1885. In 1929, the Albertsons sold the lot to Susan's sister, Edith Carlin-Bradeen, and her husband, James Bradeen, who built the house. James Bradeen was supervisor of the Jupiter School District, and Edith was active in the Jupiter Woman's Club. Later owners included Edwin Raulerson, a Town councilor from 1949 to 1955, and Gertrude Hardy, charter treasurer of the Jupiter Business and Professional Women's Club.
When it was built. The house went up during the Great Depression. The report says building a new home then shows the Bradeens were financially stable during hard times.
How it was built. The original house is an example of the Florida wood frame, or "Florida Cracker," vernacular style. Its frame and siding are Dade County pine, a durable local lumber that the report says is no longer commercially available.
The name comes from the house's corner lot in the Pine Gardens neighborhood, which was platted in 1913, according to the application.
What would be designated
The designation would cover only the original 1,152-square-foot portion of the house, including a roughly 128-square-foot front porch that was enclosed at some point. It would not cover a garage added in 1976, exterior veneer siding added in 1993, a 2001 shed, fencing, landscaping or the driveway, according to the designation report.
The house would stay a private home. At the board's first hearing on Sept. 28, the applicant's agent said public access was not proposed, according to the draft minutes. A Town staff member told the board that designation comes into play only when changes are proposed, such as building permits or site plan changes. Ms. Olin told the board she is committed to preserving the home and restoring the front porch, the draft minutes say.
How it got here
Local historic designations in Jupiter go through two Historic Resources Board hearings and then the Town Council. The board heard the application first on Sept. 28 and asked for corrections to the report, including adding a past owner, Helen Lyford, to the ownership history. The board's second hearing, where it votes on a recommendation, was on the Oct. 19 agenda. The minutes of that meeting have not yet been posted.
At the Council hearing, members may approve the designation, approve it with conditions or deny it, according to the staff report.
The Council designated another Carlin-family home, the Aicher House, in September.
How to weigh in
Anyone can speak at the Nov. 17 hearing. Agendas and backup are typically posted on the Town's website about a week before the meeting under Government, then Agendas & Minutes. Questions go to the Town's Planning and Zoning Department at 561-741-2323.
Sources
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